Mocombe: Did you have events like this career panel while you were a Bowdoin student?

Hall: The biggest one was the AF/AM/50 event. Seeing the presence and numbers of the alumni on campus was great. I met so many people-building those connections was great. That absolutely felt like, "More of this, please!" But outside of that, nothing that I can particularly remember that was centered around Black alumni.

Goldfine: Why do you want to help students, why is that a focus of the group? And what can the group do for students?

Hall: I speak for myself and a little bit for the other Black alumni: We loved Bowdoin, and there is an aspect of wanting to make Bowdoin better. For me, being a student, having even small touchpoints with alumni completely changed my perspective about what's possible and what happens after Bowdoin, and planted seeds in my mind I wouldn't have had otherwise.

So I hope the Black Alumni Association not only helps students navigate life after graduation, but also shows them a multitude of experiences and backgrounds, and provides networking and relationship building.

It all comes back to relationships, that community-centering aspect. I have seen it, experienced it, and been a beneficiary of it, and I think it's super powerful. What we need more of in this world is people truly in relationship with one another-talking, listening, and building real community. When that foundation exists, the exchange of needs-'I need this' or 'I can help with that'-happens naturally. It's not forced; it's simply the byproduct of being connected. BCBAA hopes to embody this as an ongoing community-one that remains open and accessible, allowing people to step in and out as they need.

Goldfine: Do you see this association working and helping people find jobs, leads, new jobs, and connections?

Hall: Yeah, I think people are so generous with their time in the Bowdoin community, in general, and that is amplified within this particular community. People really want to help people, with networking or co-networking, connecting them with someone they know. Many alumni have started their own ventures, too, so there are opportunities for students to intern with them or pick their brain-the possibilities are truly endless.

Our bread and butter is our mentorship program for students. We have twenty pairs this year. Tawana Cook Purnell '75 and Harrison Tate '70 have done a great job of actualizing it. [After matching students with alumus], they let the pairs take it and run with it. They decide whether they meet twice a week or once a month. They let that cadence be something they establish.